1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of vehicles and, more particularly, to vehicle air conditioning systems and related methods.
2. Related Art
Seals used in sealing fluid circulation connections in vehicle air conditioning systems typically can be purchased only as an individual seal or as an assortment of similar seals in a container. The purchase of individual seals can be time consuming and expensive when a plurality of different seals used in making fluid circulation connections in a vehicle air conditioning system needs to be replaced. Also, trying to make sure that one of the seals purchased will actually retrofit or work for replacing an existing damaged seal, for example, can be difficult as well. Additionally, when a seal assortment is sold as a package, however, these assortments conventionally do not cover a plurality of different seals of a vehicle air conditioning system needed to replace the existing plurality of different seals in fluid circulation connections in the vehicle air conditioning system. It also can be difficult to determine which seals in an assortment package match or correspond to which types of vehicle air conditioning systems.
For example, in retail automotive part stores, such as AutoZone or Pep Boys, when an individual such as a vehicle owner attempts to purchase an o-ring seal used for sealing a fluid circulation connection of a vehicle air conditioning system such as a seal for connecting a hose or fluid line to a drier, a condenser, an evaporator, a compressor, an expansion valve, or an accumulator, the store personnel often will not know what the individual needs. As a result, the vehicle owner may attempt to bring the o-ring seal that needs replacing with them to the retail store. The store personnel then try to match the particular o-ring seal with one of numerous seals in a box kit full of different sizes of o-ring seals. This process often can take 20 minutes or longer and may not ensure that the vehicle owner leaves with the correct seal or any replacement o-ring seal at all.
Situations with vehicle dealer service or parts centers often are not much better. For example, if a vehicle owner goes to a dealer for an o-ring seal for an air conditioning system of a particular vehicle, the dealer personnel often attempt to look up the air conditioning system in some type of computer or microfiche system having numerous other parts and systems stored therein. This memory look up or retrieval process also often can be time consuming. Sometimes this process results in the identification of the original equipment manufacturer's part number for the seal and other times these seals are sold only with the component device part for the air conditioning system, e.g., drier, condenser, evaporator, compressor, expansion valve, or accumulator, associated with the air conditioning system. Then, it must be determined whether the individual o-ring seal is in stock, has to be ordered, or is even available from the dealer. Additionally, personnel of non-dealer affiliated installation garages likewise often have to go to retail automotive part stores or vehicle dealer or also themselves look through box kits full of different sizes of o-ring seals in hope of finding a desired replacement seal. This problem is then compounded or made significantly worse when trying to replace a plurality of different seals associated with the air conditioning system.
As a result, the process for replacing one or more seals in a vehicle air conditioning system clearly can be difficult, time consuming, frustrating, and expensive for both the vehicle owner and the retail automotive part store, vehicle dealer, vehicle part installation garage, and others involved in the seal replacement process.